PSG avoids Le Havre sucker punch as it scrambles a draw
PARIS — Paris Saint-Germain squandered the chance to secure another Ligue 1 title early, after playing out a 3-3 draw at home on Saturday to struggling Le Havre in its last game before facing Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League semifinals.
PSG would have been officially confirmed as champion for a French record-extending 12th time, and a 10th in 12 seasons, with a win against a side that began the day among the relegation play-off places.
However, in the end it needed a 95th-minute goal by Goncalo Ramos just to salvage a draw after finding itself 3-1 down in the second half.
Although, shock value of the result aside, there is effectively no chance of PSG being caught at the top of the table.
Bradley Barcola equalized for PSG in the first half, cancelling out Christopher Operi’s opener, but Ghana star Andre Ayew quickly restored Le Havre’s lead and Abdoulaye Toure then converted a penalty just after the hour mark for the visitors.
It looked like PSG was heading for just its second Ligue 1 loss of the entire campaign, but Achraf Hakimi pulled a goal back before substitute Ramos headed in to stretch its unbeaten run in the league to 26 games since September.
Luis Enrique’s team, which is on course for a possible treble, is 12 points clear at the top of the table from Monaco, who has just four games left — and 12 points to play for.
Paris could therefore still be crowned champion this week depending on other results.
In any case, its goal difference is better than that of Monaco, meaning that even if the sides finished level on points, PSG would surely still come out on top.
“Tonight we have won the league without any doubt. We will be champions, given the goal difference advantage,” Enrique said, before looking ahead to the tie against Dortmund.
“I think we are in the best form we have been in all season. I am convinced that we will put up a good fight, and the objective is to be in the final.”
Stars rested
PSG goes to Germany for the first leg of its tie against Dortmund on
Wednesday and Enrique has been rotating his squad recently with Europe in mind.
He made 10 changes to the team that started the 4-1 win away at Lorient in midweek, with only Ousmane
Dembele keeping his place in the line-up and Kylian Mbappe among those rested.
Le Havre, which had won just one of its last 12 Ligue 1 games, stunned the home crowd on a rain-sodden evening by going ahead in the 19th minute.
It was a superb team goal, coming from a move that began with Ayew producing an audacious back-heel pass near the right touchline, and ended with Operi drilling a firsttime shot from the left low into the far corner.
The home side restored parity just before the half-hour mark as Barcola arrived at the back post to sweep in a low ball across the face of goal from Warren Zaire-Emery.
Teenage France midfielder ZaireEmery was presented to the crowd before kick-off, after PSG announced he had agreed a new contract until 2029.
Le Havre went back in front seven minutes before the interval, as Loic Nego teed up Ayew, the former Marseille player controlling the ball before rifling a shot low past Keylor Navas and into the net.
Mbappe came on in one of three halftime changes for PSG, but Le Havre extended its lead when Toure converted a penalty awarded for a foul by Danilo Pereira on Nego that was detected after a VAR review.
Portugal forward Ramos then replaced Randal Kolo Muani and produced a fine assist for Hakimi to reduce the deficit on 78 minutes.
Ramos was then denied by a superb save from goalkeeper Arthur Desmas, but the striker headed in the equalizer deep into stoppage time from Lee Kang-in’s cross.
That was a punch in the gut for Le Havre, although the draw did still lift it out of the bottom three, at least until Sunday’s matches.
“We have to be annoyed, because we didn’t come here as tourists. I think the players are really kicking themselves,” said its coach, Luka Elsner.